Fictional character biography
Born in the suburbs of New York City, Reed Richards was a brilliant, intellectually-gifted and knowledgeable, but socially-withdrawn, shy and reserved, scientific child genius, who possessed a high IQ level of 267 and held a deep-rooted love and passion for science, being well-versed in various fields of scientific topics, such as astrophysics, chemistry, biology, quantum mathematics, mechanical and electrical engineering, advanced chemistry and robotics and was the brightest student in school. However, due to his bookish and introverted personality, he was regularly picked on and tormented by bullies, while also receiving similar treatment from his father, who despised his son for his non-masculine and studious nature. However, as a result of demonstrating a teleporter at a school science fair, Reed was later recruited for a government think-tank sponsoring intellectually-gifted youngsters and child polymaths, similar to Reed. He conducts his research, along with several other students including Victor Van Damme, at a facility located in the Baxter Building in Manhattan, where he meets Johnny Storm and Sue Storm, with whom Reed becomes smitten and romantically involved. During the final experimentation phase of his research, Reed was visited by Ben Grimm, his best and only friend since childhood, who protected him from bullies during his years in school. At the age of 21, Reed, along with other scientists, attempted to teleport organic material through an alternate plane of existence called the N-Zone, with Sue assisting him and Johnny and Ben observing the demonstration. The experiment goes awry due to Victor secretly changing the coordinates of the teleporter at the last minute, resulting in the four being engulfed in a parallel dimension termed as the "N-Zone" and grants the four with super-powers, with Reed being able to stretch his body parts to incredible lengths and is endowed with enhanced durability. They have a series of adventures and encounters with a number of super-human and extraterrestrial threats, during the four's attempts to solve the mystery behind the source of their new-found powers and turn Reed and Ben back to normal. The four are later exposed to the media and public, who name the group as: "The Fantastic Four", with Reed undertaking the alias of "Mr. Fantastic" and embarking on numerous adventures and conflicts against inter-dimensional adversaries and super-human enemies. Throughout the series, Ultimate Reed Richards' personality remains largely similar to his Earth-616 counterpart, being a well-meaning, altruistic and unassuming, but socially-awkward, quirky, eccentric and over-analytical polymath in his early-20s, who balances his love and passion for science with his blossoming relationship with Sue, while also serving as the brains and leader of the Fantastic Four, devising the team's equipment and strategy against adversaries, while being notably younger and snarkier than his mainstream counterpart.
After the Ultimatum miniseries resulted in the death of many heroes, Reed attempts to propose to Sue during Franklin Storm's funeral but she breaks up with him and the Fantastic Four is disbanded. Reed is later seen working with aliens to pillage the artifacts stored at Project Pegasus. It becomes clear that Reed's worldview has changed to a more sinister outlook, as a result of the mental and emotional trauma endured from the Ultimatum coupled with Sue's rejection and breakup. In Ultimate Enemy , he is shown to be living with his parents again before an explosion seemingly kills them. [5] In Ultimate Mystery , Reed is revealed to have orchestrated his family's murders and faked his own death, before allying himself with the attacking aliens. [6] Ultimate Doomsday sees Reed confronted by his former teammates, as well as Spider-Man, Mahr Vehl, and the Ultimates. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear to his former friends that Reed is a threat to the world. Part of his motivation to become a villain is that he no longer likes his home dimension and wishes he could find another world to improve. [7]
In Ultimate Fallout , Reed is revealed to have survived his defeat and is shown trapped in the Negative Zone. He soon escapes and returns to his world, where he vows to win back his friends by saving the planet. [8] In Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates , Reed is revealed to be the Maker, creator of The city and leader of the Children of Tomorrow, a race of genetically engineered superhumans. He has come back to fight against the Ultimates after spending 1,000 years in the distant future - having been unable to age due to his powers - and the top of his head has been 'stretched' in order to increase his intelligence. It is not until Reed reveals his face to Thor that the Ultimates learn his true identity. [9] Invisible Woman traps the Maker into a small psychic bubble, but he survives. [10] Later, the Maker assembles part of the Infinity Gauntlet with help from Kang and her Dark Ultimates. [11]
When the primary Galactus arrives in the Ultimate Universe due to a temporal distortion, [12] the Ultimates are forced to approach Reed for help after Mysterio (who was trapped in the Ultimate universe) identifies Galactus and reveals having been defeated by Earth-616's Reed Richards in the past. [13] Accompanied by the new Spider-Man, Reed travels to Earth-616 to access his counterpart's files. Before he departs, he and Miles are confronted by Valeria, leaving Reed shaken as he witnesses the family he and Sue could have had. [14] Based on his counterpart's files on Galactus, Reed defeats him by sending him to the Negative Zone, where he can starve to death due to the Negative Zone consisting entirely of anti-matter and thus providing nothing for Galactus to consume. [15]
Secret Wars
Nick Fury secretly recruits Reed to help draft counter-measures to doomsday scenarios, where he eventually starts having to fight Incursions. While working on stopping another, he finds the Cabal escaping from another destroyed Earth. [16] Following the final incursion, Reed and the Cabal escape the destruction of Earth-1610 in a "life-raft" created for that purpose. Learning that they are on a new world ruled by God Emperor Doom using the power of the Beyonders and Molecule Man, Reed works with his Earth-616 counterpart to devise a means of defeating Doom. However, they are divided due to their morals, as Ultimate Reed wishes to kill their enemy while 616-Reed is more concerned with ensuring that the world can survive without him. [17] After they find Molecule Man, the Maker attempts to eliminate 616-Reed by devolving his counterpart into a monkey. However, Molecule Man intervenes, returning Reed to normal while turning the Maker into pepperoni pizzas. [18]
New Avengers
Despite this, the Maker survives and was split into an infinite number of beings by the Molecule Man, who placed one version of the Maker in each of the newly formed universes being created by his Earth-616 counterpart and Franklin Richards. Each of these versions shares the same consciousness, allowing them to operate independently. He then emerged in the new Prime Earth, where he takes over the science-based terrorist organization W.H.I.S.P.E.R. to continue experimenting for his own gain. His first experiment focuses on harnessing the souls of the dead to try and capture the souls of previous universes. [19] Maker also assembles a new incarnation of the Revengers, with plans to have them face the New Avengers. They consist of Asti the All-Seeing, Paibok, Vermin, White Tiger, and alternate versions of Angar the Screamer and Skar. [20]
During the "Civil War II" storyline, the New Revengers gain City's O.M.N.I.T.R.O.C.U.S form as its latest member. [21] As A.I.M. is facing off against S.H.I.E.L.D., Maker takes advantage of this by sending his New Revengers to attack them. [22] While O.M.N.I.T.R.O.C.U.S. keeps Sunspot trapped in his office while having his own defense system attack him, Angela del Toro fights her aunt Ava Ayala while the other Revengers members attack the rest of the New Avengers and the staff of Avengers Base Two. [23] Donning a variation of the Rescue armor, Toni Ho manages to slay the alternate Skar. Also, Mockingbird managed to get free from O.M.N.I.T.R.O.C.U.S.' clutches with the help of Warlock while Ava frees Angela from the combined influences of the Tiger God and the Hand. [24] The remaining members of the New Revengers face off against the New Avengers and A.I.M. While the remaining members of the New Revengers are defeated, Maker escapes. [25] Sunspot later confronts Maker aboard fake Air Force One and defeats him. Sunspot then delivers Maker to the government, who imprison him in a special cell. [26]
Working with Project Oversight
Maker later appears as a member of Project Oversight. He was seen interrogating Eddie Brock about the incident revolving around the Grendel symbiote and Knull while stating that he is not the Mister Fantastic that Brock knows. In addition, he talked about how the Venom symbiote has lost its personality, saying it is just a guard dog now, that it can't give Brock powers anymore. When Brock asks Maker if he would be able to restore it, Maker states that the only way to do that is to connect it to the symbiote hive mind and the last person to do that was the late Flash Thompson. [27] Maker was unable to get the answer from Brock about what happened to the same of the Grendel symbiote. He even reveals the symbiote bio-mass that was extracted by Flash's corpse as he plans to exhume and vivisect it. This causes the Venom symbiote to retaliate and trap Maker in a morgue locker. After getting out, he reaches a room to delete the footage of him being attacked by the Venom symbiote while also viewing the events of "Spider-Geddon" and "Infinity Countdown." [28]
Maker later shows up at the hospital when Brock was by the bedside of Dylan Brock. [29] Maker probed the living darkness cocooning Brock's body until the Venom symbiote's tendril constricts him. Eddie tells Maker that he has to go after Dylan after it was discovered that Dylan is his son, but Maker states that Dylan will be fine. [30] Maker shows his concern that Eddie will not survive long being forcefully separated from the Venom symbiote. After turning up the volume the symbiote is successfully removed from Eddie, however incapacitating both Maker and Eddie. [31]
Eventually, Maker bonds with the Venom Symbiote from Earth-1610, but is attacked by a symbiote named Virus and thrown into the Ultimate Universe, where Maker is happy to see his Earth's New York in ruins. [32] [33]
After Eddie Brock becomes the new King in Black following Knull's defeat, Venom tells the Avengers that Maker is still around and may be plotting an invasion on the main Marvel Universe. [34] [35]
Relocating to Earth-6160
During the "Ultimate Invasion" storyline, the Maker used the body that was in the government's custody since his defeat at the hands of Sunspot to escape his special cell. He then meets with Miles Morales and asks him if he wants to go back to his native universe, but Miles declines. The Illuminati confront the Maker, but he escapes and starts to rewrite the history of another universe, being shown preventing a spider from biting the Peter Parker of that world. [36]
His actions create Earth-6160, a reality that was similar to aspects of Earth-1610 and Earth-616, yet vastly different from both, reshaping it to his will. [37] He establishes a version of The City at Latveria and becomes known as the Imperator of this world, reshaping international politics and creating a new world order ruled by himself and his Council, using the organization H.A.N.D as a secret police to enforce his laws. He prevents Galactus from consuming Earth and changes the outcome of the Kree-Skrull War. [38]
Flashbacks show that the Maker directly sabotaged the rocket launch that would give this world's version of the Fantastic Four their powers, causing the deaths of Earth-6160's Johnny Storm (who burned to death), Susan Storm (who died from radiation), and Ben Grimm (who was found dead at the bottom of a quarry). Torturing his imprisoned counterpart in The City, he conditions this Reed to the identity of Doom, turning him into a imprisoned servant. [39]
Other deeds included enabling Loki to take the throne of Asgard by having Thor imprisoned and Odin killed, and witnessing Howard Stark becoming the business partner of Obadiah Stane. Despite some feats, he is unable to prevent the origin of Hulk and couldn't find Captain America's frozen body. His memory log has Earth-6160's known inhabitants that would've been superheroes in this reality listed as either dead, inactive, captured, or "controlled". While holding an event in Latveria, Maker emerges from The City and the international gathering is crashed by an army of versions of Ultimates. Maker and his allies defeat them at the cost of Obadiah Stane's life. He later has a group of innocent people vaporized since they would have an involvement in creating them in the future as he states that he'll need the help of Howard, who operates as Iron Man in this reality. [40]
When Howard meets with the Maker's Council, which consists of Emmanuel da Costa of the Society of South America, Henri Duggary of the European Coalition, Hulk of the Children of Eternal Light, the Harada-Yoshida Alliance of Hi no Kuni, the Rasputin family, and Lord Ra and Lord Khonshu. Maker then appears to greet his Council and welcome Howard as its new member upon succeeding Obadiah as the leader of the North American Union. Taking him into The City, Howard is tasked with building the Immortus Engine and is paired up with Doom. [41]
As Maker tries to enlist the help of Howard Stark in order to create the Immortus Engine, an alternate version of Kang the Conqueror arrives with an army of versions of Ultimates, and eventually Howard Stark rebels, trapping the Maker inside the city for two years after realizing his true intentions and personality. The Maker's Council is forced to deal with the resulting fallout during his absence while awaiting for the day when The City opens to see what comes out of it. Howard's son Tony Stark takes up the name of Iron Lad as he and Doom use the Immortus Engine to retrieve Captain America's frozen body before Maker can find it. [42]
Six months later, Iron Lad, Doom, and their allies Captain America, Thor, and Sif work to build the Ultimates as a resistance network as it was stated that The City would open in 18 months. [43]
Powers and abilities
Ultimate Reed Richards has the power of elasticity. He can stretch his eyes, specifically the lens, so that he does not need his glasses or any other visual augmentation, but can only sustain this for short periods. It is revealed that his abilities allow him to stretch his brain in order to accommodate and solve almost any problem, thus making him effectively a human computer, so Reed is a genius with an IQ of at least 267 at age 16. [44] The Ultimate Reed cannot stretch indefinitely: catching the falling Carol Danvers after she is dropped by the Silver Surfer, he admits that it hurt him to stretch that far. [45]
The Ultimate Reed experiences an increase in his intellect from the accident that empowered him, making his "mind as flexible as his body". He has shown a reduced need for sleep due to the hyper-efficient workings of his brain. [46] Ultimate Reed's body has been radically transformed, his only internal organ being a "bacterial stack" that generates energy to fuel his body. [47] This obviates the need to explain, for example, how his circulatory system can pump his blood when his body is stretched the length of a football field; he simply has none. Lacking a digestive system, he has no need to eat or drink. Similarly, because he has no lungs, Ultimate Reed does not need to breathe in any conventional human sense and can survive in environments lacking oxygen; during his time in the N-Zone, where the atmosphere is essentially acid and contains anti-matter, he is able to survive. [48]
Ultimate Reed is extremely durable, surviving a nova flame attack from the Human Torch, ionic attacks from the Thing and having his brain blown up by Susan Storm's force fields. [49] The Maker can split himself into multiple sentient beings that can operate separately from one another. [50]
Following the Secret Wars, the Maker was split into an infinite number of beings by the Molecule Man, who placed one version of the Maker in each of the newly formed universes being created by his Earth-616 counterpart and Franklin Richards. Each of these versions shares the same consciousness, allowing them to operate independently. This also enables him to teleport by switching between different versions of himself from different universes, and to transport weapons from other universes, which makes it difficult to disarm him. Brashear fields can be used to block his access to other dimensions. [51]
